Tobias Read: 'A recent investigation in the nytimes found that Republicans are “weaponizing public office against climate action.”'
The facade of Goldman Sachs headquarters, reflecting One World Trade Center in Manhattan.In several Republican-led states, the officials who oversee pension funds for millions of state workers are being told, or may soon be told, to ignore the financial risks associated with a warming world. There’s something distinctly anti-free market about policymakers limiting investment professionals’ choices — and it’s putting the retirement savings of millions at risk.
As Oregon’s state treasurer, I oversee pension funds. These funds are made up of the retirement savings of hundreds of thousands of teachers, police officers, firefighters and other public servants. It is my duty to invest their savings in a way that maximizes returns over the long term so that Oregon can fulfill the promise it made to provide them with a secure retirement.
If you still don’t believe that the financial risks are real — and that pension funds should be mitigating them — then consider the actions of comparable institutions with enormous balance sheets and investment horizons that span decades. This year, the U.S. Navy released a climate strategy that aims to help its bases adapt to rising seas and other changes. Insurers continually strive to understand the evolving risks posed to properties in areas increasingly prone to flooding and wildfire.
A recent investigation in The New York Times found that Republicans are “weaponizing public office against climate action.” They claim that the asset managers who take climate change into consideration when deciding where to invest are boycotting the fossil fuel industry. That’s hardly the case — many of the firms being targeted are still major backers of oil and gas. BlackRock, one of the firms singled out by Texas, is the second-largest investor in both Exxon Mobil and ConocoPhillips.
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